Maharashtra drought: State records 18.8% rain deficit, 40-50% rain deficit across six districts

For Pramod Gaikwad (42), a soybean farmer from Dharashiv’s Chincholi village, waiting for rain is the only hope to ensure that his crops survive the long dry spell or use a rotavator, a tractor to churn the sown land and level the soil, making space for new crop. 

“The soybean plant flowered, but due to insufficient moisture, the germination was delayed, and saplings started drying up,” said Pramod, adding that his region received only one spell of rainfall towards the end of July, and since then it has been a dry spell. Pramod owns 10 acres of land and expects to make around ₹1 - 1.5 lakh in profit on Soybean yield this year. 

Like Pramod, Siddheshwar Mane (42) from Naichakur village in Dharashiv is facing a similar situation. Due to rainfall deficit and the diseases he had to face crop loss of soybean, urad daal (black gram) and harvested poor-quality moong dal. “Soybean suffered yellow mosaic virus (YMV), while urad’s leaves turned yellow and flowers never came,” Siddheshwar said. He sowed urad in one acre of land and had to bear loss around ₹80000/-. 

Districts like Dharashiv, Beed, and others have not received rainfall since July, affecting the crops, cattle, and daily water needs of farmers and labourers. According to state government data, the rainfall for the Chatrapati Sambhajinagar Division was recorded at 424.5 mm, while the normal rainfall expected was 613.1 mm for the period from June 1 to September 18, marking a deficit of 30.8%. Dharashiv and five other districts in Marathwada fall under the Chatrapati Sambhajinagar Division. The Pune and Nashik divisions also recorded around a 30% rain deficit, while the Amravati and Nagpur divisions recorded a 27% rain deficit. The Konkan division recorded a 6.3% rain deficit.

Overall, the state recorded an 18.8% rainfall deficit, receiving actual rainfall of 755.9 mm from June to September 18, compared to its average of 932.3 mm, amid the El Niño phenomenon. At least six districts recorded a rainfall deficit of 40-50%, including Amravati, Solapur, Latur, and others.

During the Kharif season, farmers in the State sow crops like soybean, cotton, millet, maize, tur, moong, and urad. Farmers in several districts have complained of crop failure due to lack of rainfall, and the incidence of pests and diseases has also increased to a large extent.